Neumannovka and Kutuzovka (Volhynia, Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine)

Neumannovka (Neumanufka) and Kutuzovka (Kotozufka), two villages in eastern Volhynia, Russia (now Ukraine), located 25 miles (45 km) northwest of Zhitomir, were the seat of a Swiss-Volhynian Mennonite congregation 1861 to 1874. The group moved from Eduardsdorf (Poutchy) in western Volhynia, 14 miles (24 km) west of Dubno, to Kutuzovka an 1861 because of new land made available by the abolition of serfdom by Tsar Alexander II. Initially the group settled not only in Kutuzovka but also in the neighboring village of Neumannovka, three miles (5 km) farther northeast. A church was erected between the two villages and the entire Mennonite settlement was called Kutuzovka. The land was owned by the Mennonites and considerable economic progress was made in the short time they lived there. Surplus products were sold in Zhitomir and Kiev. The church was served by Elder Jacob Stucky and ministers Jakob D. Goering and Johann Goering. The names of Dirks and Ortman were added to the church here. The village of Lindenthal was located between Kutuzovka and Zhitomir and was populated by West Prussian Mennonites. Virtually the entire Kutuzovka settlement immigrated to the United States in 1874. Seventy-three families under the leadership of Elder Stucky left Kutuzovka on 6 August 1874, most of these settling in McPherson County, Kansas. They organized the Hoffnungsfeld Mennonite Church near Moundridge, Kansas. The Eden Mennonite Church was later formed by members of the Hoffnungsfeld church.

Bibliography

Kaufman, P. R. Unser Volk und seine Geschichte. N.p., ca. 1931.

Schrag, Martin H. "European History of the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonite Ancestors of Mennonites Now Living in Communities in Kansas and South Dakota." MA dissertation, 1956.